Huskers Fall Short To No. 15 Michigan, 49-46
Nebraska had two chances in the final 10 seconds of a defensive struggle but No. 15 Michigan escaped with a 49-46 win over the Huskers Monday night.
On a night where Nebraska (17-11, 7-10 Big Ten) shot just 26 percent, the Huskers’ defensive effort allowed NU to nearly complete the upset. Nebraska held the Wolverines to 29.5 percent and forced 14 turnovers as neither team led by more than six points the entire game.
Trailing 47-46 with 11.8 seconds left, Roddy Gayle Jr. missed the front end of a 1-and-1 and Rollie Worster got the rebound and found a wide-open Connor Essegian on the wing, but Essegian’s 3-pointer was off the mark and Michigan got the rebound.
Tre Donaldson was fouled with 2.6 seconds and made both free throws to make it a 49-46 game, but NU would have one more shot to send the game to overtime, but Berke Büyüktuncel’s shot at the buzzer was off the mark, allowing the Wolverines to hold on.
Brice Williams was outstanding in the loss for Nebraska, finishing with a game-high 26 points, including 18 in the first half to keep the Huskers within striking distance. Williams went over the 1,000-point mark as a Husker on Monday, becoming just the fourth NU player to accomplish the feat in less than two seasons.
For Michigan (21-6, 13-3 Big Ten), Gayle led the Wolverines with 12 points, while Donaldson and Danny Wolf finished with 11 and 10 points respectively.
Michigan led 32-29 early in the second half when Nebraska used a 6-0 spurt to take a 35-32 lead with 13:44 left, but Michigan would answer back as Donaldson scored five straight points to help the visitors regain the lead.
Nebraska led 39-37after a Rollie Worster basket but Wolf, who was held in check most of the night, sparked an 8-0 Wolverine run to give Michigan its largest lead of the game at 45-39 after L.J. Carson’s 3-pointer with 4:25 left.
The Huskers would come right back, as Williams was fouled and hit both free throws on NU’s next possession and the game would remain a four-point game until Sam Hoiberg’s 3-pointer with 1:36 left cut the deficit to one to set up the finish.
Nebraska used a lot of Williams and a strong defensive effort to stay with 25-21 at the half. The Huskers held Michigan to 33 percent shooting from the field, while shooting just 25 percent in the opening 20 minutes.
Williams scored Nebraska’s first 11 points, as the Huskers jumped out to an 11-8 lead with 15:39 left I the half, as he finished with 18 first half points
Michigan came back with a 6-0 run to take a 14-11 lead on a Wolf jumper with 11:38 left in the half before a steal and dunk by Williams ended the Wolverine run.
Nebraska trailed 21-16 before Williams scored five straight for the Huskers as his dunk with 2:11 left forced a Michigan timeout and brought the Pinnacle Bank Arena crowd to its feet. Michigan regained the lead in the final minute of the half on a Gayle jumper before he hit a pair of free throws in the final seconds of the half to give UM a 25-21 lead at the break.
Nebraska returns to action on Saturday afternoon, as the Huskers host Minnesota. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network, and tickets are available at Huskers.com/Tickets, as Saturday’s game is the Stripe the Vault game.